never gave up. he argued eight cases on discrimination before the supreme court. he won every one of them. mr. chambers was 76 years old. we want to answer your questions. e-mail me, askrev@msnbc.com. remember are, friend or foe, i want to know. thanks for watching. i'm al sharpton. "hardball" starts right now. warning, let's play "hardball." good evening. i'm chris matthews in washington. let me start tonight with this. a dozen years ago this month, the united states of america received a sharp warning. bin laden. determined to strike in u.s. that message was delivered to the president directly.

a month later this country was hit harder than at any time since pearl harbor. but without blaming george w. bush for failing to act sufficiently to that warning an of august 6th, 2001, should anyone blame this president and his people for acting in time this time? joining me tonight from cairo, nbc news chief foreign correspondent richard engel and with us from new york, msnbc terrorist analyst governor ebben coleman. nbc is reporting now the interrogation behind the worldwide terrorist alert this week was an intercepted communication between the leader an of al qaeda in the arabian peninsula and the leader of al qaeda central over in pakistan. the man who succeeded osama bin laden, ayman mohyeldin -- ayman zawahiri. the two men reportedly agreed that they wanted to do something big. timed to the end of the muslim holy month of ramadan which is right now. and that's what led the united states to close 19 embassies. there they are on the map and consulates in the mideast and africa. there's still a lot that remains

unknown including which target. over the weekend, one thing clear from every lawmaker and official with knowledge of the attack, nobody's crying wolf here. this is one of the most serious threats in years. >> been an awful lot of hatter chatter out there. chatter means conversation among terrorists about the planning that's going on. very reminiscent of what we saw pre-9/11. this is the most serious threat that i've seen in the last several years. >> we need to know and realize we're living in an increasingly dangerous world and this many specific threat that we've been briefed on over and over again has reached a new level. >> i must say this is probably one of the most specific and incredible threats i've seen perhaps since 9th because of the specificity, because of where it's coming from, the credibility of it, the level of chatter, it seems to be a fairly large operation. >> we've received information that high level people from al qaeda in the arabian peninsula are talking about a major attack

and these are people in a high level. >> richard engel, this cuts to the very heart of the question which the two parties in this country have been debating for years. is al qaeda still whole or a group of atomized, separate units. we hear today a few moments ago that the key to this intercept was the communication between al qaeda in the arabian peninsula which we thought was independent and al qaeda central in pakistan under zawahiri, the heir to bin laden. is it one big organization or a bunch of separate groups that sort of say we're al qaedaish? >> it is a bunch of different organizations that are linked through key individuals. what we saw in this case was perhaps the world's most dangerous man, the leader of al qaeda, ayman al zawahiri who replaced osama bin laden to lead the world's most dangerous terrorist organization, its most aggressive terrorist group calling his most capable assassin the leader of the al

qaeda in the arabian peninsula branch. his name is nasr al wahayshi. when you have the leader of a big organization, al qaeda central, calling his most dangerous assassin and telling him to do something big, not only is it a big problem for the united states and one that should be taken seriously but it also shows the linkages that still do exist between the al qaeda organization in pakistan, bin laden's old organization, and some of the key players that are spread across the organization, across the regional affiliates, if you will. nasr al wahayshi, who was ordered to carry out this big attack at one stage was considered a possible successor to bin laden. he fought himself in tora bora. he considered himself an equal to bin laden, not just someone who was subservant to him. they have a long history and he runs a branch, but he runs a very powerful branch.

>> let me go to ebben coleman for your analysis as well. give me your sense of what this tells us, the fact that al qaeda central still is central in pakistan where we killed bin laden. here's the successor to bin lad laden giving order to the guys in al qaeda in the arabian peninsula saying i want some action. >> i think it's important to focus here on something that rich just said which is that this relationship is not a new one. nasr fought in afghanistan. he was a personal aide to bin laden. this is someone who's had a personal relationship with the senior al qaeda leadership in afghanistan and pakistan for years. so he's exactly the kind of person that al qaeda central leadership would call upon to do something like this. the question is whether or not aqap has the resources to carry out an attack and what kind of attack that is. they've tried twice now to strike at the united states homeland. both times they came close but they failed. so i guess the thinking is now that they're going to go after a reachable target. >> give us the times. remind us. >> of course. there was the underwear bomb plot where you had abdulmutallab

who tried putting the bomb in his underwear. and the cargo bomb plot where they tried putting bombs inside cargo planes headed to the united states. both failed by not by much. the question is have they now restructured their targeting and going after targets easier to go after, ie u.s. embassies in places like yemen, saudi arabia, egypt, sudan, et cetera. >> do they have a global reach, the al qaeda in the arabian peninsula? do they have a global reach? the guy who has been assigned this job of terrorism? >> absolutely. if you had any question about that, look at their propaganda. they put their propaganda out in not just arabic, but in english. they have an entire magazine inspire magazine which is in english which is designed to reach out to an american audience and convince americans to join al qaeda. what's more is there at least some evidence that they might have succeeded in this. because guess where the boston bombers learned how to build their explosive devices? at least partially through aqap's inspire magazine,

something that al qaeda was very happy to note following the boston bombings. so the answer is yes, they do have a reach outside of yemen, they do have a reach inside the united states. there have been a number of americans that have tried joining al qaeda in the arabian peninsula there are people that still to this day are trying to travel to join al qaeda in yemen from the united states. there's a reason for concern here. it's not just an abstract threat. >> richard engel, according to what you've been able to find out, if you can show that map again of the embassies and the consulates that have been shut down for the rest of the week. there they are. is that will what will we believe in the united states government is the extent of their range right now, the range of the possibilities or probabilities of a terrorist attack? >> i think probabilities. it is also perhaps a limit of what the united states can do. what we understood was that there was this order from the leader of al qaeda telling his top assassin to carry out something big and the united states can order its embassies to close. it can increase security around

its consulates. it can close american businesses. i expect -- can't tell american schools that operate in egypt and many countries what they should do, it can only advise them. i think we're only seeing part of what this organization could do. you asked earlier, there are small al qaeda wannabe cells in parts of africa, even here in egypt that don't really have much association with al qaeda central. they just raise a black flag and try and use the name to try and scare people. that is not the case in al qaeda in the arabian peninsula. this is a key group that is linked historically and through some family ties, as well directly back to the top al qaeda leadership. it also has, and this is something i'm surprised hasn't come out yet but what evan was talking about, a particular interest in the airline industry. this group al qaeda in the arabian peninsula has been trying to build better bombs to get through airport security, to

bring down american jetliners. it developed the underwear bomb so it could go through metal detectors because the underwear bomb doesn't have any metal in it. now the group is working on trying to get surgically implanted bombs which could get through those body scanning technologies that have been put in airports. it is a dangerous group. it is not a group of wannabes. >> i want to go to the politics at home about this and the reaction, because it is bipartisan. first of all, back to you, evan. this is frightening. i know someone at tsa. i'm trying to find out what i can about this surgically implanted. according to one report i read months ago, if somebody looks like they've had recent surgery or even looks like you're in bad health, they give them a close check at the airports. >> yeah, they do. i think the good news here is that this kind of device or this kind of operation is extremely difficult to do. and in the past, there have been some experiments in this regard. and whoever it was they

experimented on, whether it was animals or humans, they didn't live too long. it's not very easy to put a foreign object inside of someone and have them live in perpetuity. the answer is, it's not easy but unfortunately, al qaeda is putting a lot of effort into this. and it's not just aqap either. we've seen generally on al qaeda communications networks, people talking about this idea and reflecting on whether or not it's possible, what would be required, and whether or not even homegrown extremists are capable of doing something like this. >> so tsas around the world should be on the lookout for somebody who says my friend here is very ill. let me help them aboard. they should be aware of that situation, as well. >> if someone has had this kind of surgery, they're probably not in the greatest physical condition afterwards. >> they shouldn't be on an airplane in any case. anyway, congressman peter king, a guy we keep an eye on, is a republican. he's chair of the house subcommittee on counterterrorism and intelligence. he said the threat lacked specificity but he's worried, too. let's watch. >> the threat was so specific as to how enormous it was going to be and also certain dates were

given, but it didn't specify where it's going to be. the assumption is that it's most likely to happen in the middle east at or about one of the embassies, but there's no guarantee of that at all. basically, it could be in europe. it could be in the united states. it could be a series of combined attacks. >> a common sense guy. here's the general, general martin dempsey, chair of the joint chiefs. he said it wasn't clear if the target was the u.s. or other western interests. we just know something's going to happen, we think. we don't know where, though. the probability circle is in the asian area and in east africa. but let's watch what the chairman of the joint chiefs says about it. >> there is a significant threat stream. we're reacting to it. >> is the threat to blow up an embassy, consulate or something else. >> that part of it is unspecified. but the intent seems clear. the intent is to attack western, not just u.s. interests.

>> that's martha radic. let me go back to richard engel my hero over there. what is the sense of people over there in terms of one to ten concern? from what i've been pulling together on this, this is really big. people really think something's going to happen. is that the feeling in cairo and that part of the world? >> in cairo, people aren't really focused on this at all. cairo is in the middle of its own domestic problems. there are protests in the streets. the muslim brotherhood was thrown out of power in a coup. john mccain and others are in town, trying to work out a settlement. it's the end of ramadan. people are fasting all day long. so no one was really talking about this. we went down to the u.s. embassy today which was already a fortified compound. there are tons of concrete piled along all of the side streets leading to the embassy. they've been there for about a year when people tried to storm inside the embassy. remember, there was that offensive internet movie that mocked the muslim prophet muhammad. since then, the embassy has already been in a degree of lockdown. mostly it has been the u.s. intelligence community, security

officials who have been watching this threat, people who know who al qaeda in the arabian peninsula's leaders are, what they're capable of. some people disregarded the idea that it would be an embassy that embassies are relatively hard to attack, that it could be a consulate, it could be a small outpost, or it could be an airport, an airline. this is a creative group, a group that although it might be difficult is considering actively how to put a bomb in someone's body. it is putting -- figuring out how to insert one inside of a pet. this is not the group that would only just look at obvious targets like an embassy or consulate. >> amazing story. thank you so much. richard engel and evan colman. coming up, a fallen star totally different star. major league baseball has suspended alex rodriguez. a-rod of the yankees for this season. up next, he's the biggest name yet to go down in major league baseball's effort to rid the

game of performance-enhancing drugs, otherwise known as steroids. but the story doesn't end there. also, if there is one republican democrats would love to knock off next year, it's mitch mcconnell of kentucky. in yesterday's fireworks, at kentucky's fancy farm, the big picnic showed how much flack mcconnell's going to get from the right, from the tea party side, as well as from the left. and playing politics. here are pictures of four actors playing in this order dwight eisenhower, upper left, jack kennedy upper right, lyndon johnson bottom left, richard nixon bottom right in the new movie "the butler." see if you can figure out who's playing them. finally, let me finish with the congress that just took vacation to rest up for doing nothing, except shutting down the government this fall. an amazingly bad story about american politics, the u.s. congress right now. and that's "hardball." we'll be right back after this with more politics. [ crashing ] [ male announcer ] when your favorite food starts a fight,

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welcome back to "hardball." we normally talk down falls and comebacks in the world of politics on "hardball," but today, it was the sports world that played host to one of the greatest down falls you will ever see. alex rodriguez was going to be the clean home run champion of the world, the man to break barry bonds' career record. a-rod's accomplishments in the game are too many to name and the yankee third baseman became a fixture in american pop culture thanks to his off the

field romances with cameron diaz and madonna. today his image and reputation are utterly shattered. major league baseball announced today they would be suspending rodriguez until the end of next season. that's more than 200 games, and here's why. major league baseball says he's guilty of using and possessing numerous forms of performance enhancing drugs. they also say he attempted to cover up violations by obstructing the league's investigations. in addition to a-rod, 12 other players have been suspended for using banned substances. none are expected to appeal the rulings except for rodriguez. about about hour ago rodriguez spoke to reporters. >> it's been the toughest fight of my life. by any means, am i out of the woods? this is probably just phase 2 just starting. it's not going to get any easier. it's probably going to get harder. but i am humbled and thankful for the support. >> after sitting out the entire season so far due to injury, rodriguez is expected to make his return to the yankee lineup

tonight against chicago, against the white sox. his suspension isn't effective until thursday, and he could end up playing throughout his appeal. bob nightingale is a columnist and mark the moose is an analyst with the fan. thank you, bob, thank you, mark. we have just come from a possible terrorist attack on the united states to this topic. but everybody i work with including the new yorkers especially new yorkers and the people who hate the yankees all want to talk about this. bob, you start with this. the significance in baseball history. does this go back to the black sox? where do you put this in terms of bad news for the country's pastime? >> remember it used to be barry bonds was the poster boy for steroids. now it's alex rodriguez. it's the biggest suspension ever levied for a drug violation. all the way through 2014, going to cost him $36 million. he's already planning to appeal it. he has appealed it. we won't get a decision on this thing until october november,

according to the players association. >> i mean, how do you read -- how do you read a-rod's statement? is this like say it ain't so, joe? he's saying it ain't. is he saying it ain't so or just saying i'm disappointed. >> what the heck does that mean? i'm disappointed by the verdict. does that mean i didn't do it? it's not a matter of whether or not he did it or not. there is the link to biogenesis and tony bosch. it's whether or not he was treated fairly through the process. ryan braun was suspended 65 games. it will cost him $3.25 million. the other 12 players were all suspended 50 games. alex rodriguez is suspended 211 games costing him about $34 million. he can still be owed $61 million when he comes back in 2015. and there has been a conjecture feeling that there's been a softening among the major league players and the players association. by no means was that softening there for the statement from michael wiener, the head of the

mlb after the suspension was doled out where he said a-rod was not treated fairly. they think bud selig went out of his power here. they are going to go out there and vehemently fight for alex rodriguez. that's what it comes down to. >> okay. i like bud selig. the first time the guy used drugs, he broke the rules. he got caught. then he said he wouldn't do it again. then he got caught doing it again. then he tried to cover it up, and now he is finally caught, and now he is appealing. why would you take his side? why would anybody take his side unless they were a union shop steward. >> in this case, that's the case. the union shop steward does his job. does anybody who's objective take a-rod's side? >> it's not a matter of taking alex rodriguez's side. chris, you understand this. it's due process. he is due rights. he was not going to take the medicine that major league baseball was doling out, swallow it and in essence ending his career. you don't think he's coming out after being out of baseball for two years at 39, soon to be 40 and say you know what? that's good. i'll take my $61 million and go home. listen, in all due respect to bud selig and the owner,

baseball profited during the years of barry bonds and mark mcgwire and seam sosa. >> but they cheated. >> absolutely they cheated. but everyone made money off of that will era. it started to become an issue when congress got involved, when tom verducci put out an article in "sports illustrated," and the record books were obliterated. >> let me go 0 back to bob night night ten gail for another view. remember the motto, don't do the crime if you can't do the time. >> yeah, i mean, baseball was very upset. last year bartolo cologne got popped for testosterone. so did melky cabrera. both got raises. we'll see what happens with this class. nelson cruz of the texas rangers. jhonny peralta of the detroit tigers, it will be very interesting to see if they get a bigger salary next year than they do this year. >> you know, in fact, the quiet, all-burning question about pete rose who played for philly for a

while. he's obviously a cincinnati guy. but the old question, how do you balance out great performance against breaking the rules. where do the fans stand on that one, mark? >> well, listen, i think there are fans quite upset with alex rodriguez and this steroid era. but i go back to my previous point. i think baseball profited. home runs were up. runs per game were up. baseball somewhere in '98, books were written. the sport was rejuvenated. i think there was time where baseball fans looked at the record books and cherished those records. unfortunately, the steroid era obliterated that record book. i think more often than not a lot of people look at peds and say to themselves you know what? it's a sign of the times. there's too much money to be made. if i'm an athlete at that point in time, i might look for an advantage. i'm not saying it's right or wrong or that i would do it, but people go out and say if i can go out there and become a $10 million or $11 million a year ballplayer instead of a $4

million player, you know what? i might go do that. >> mark, the way to promote more home runs. you narrow the strike zone. you shrink the strike zone. make it tough on the pitchers. bring in the outfield run walls if you want more home runs. you're making it sound like baseball was in cahoots on the drugs. >> no, i'm not saying they were in cahoots. did they turn a blind eye? there is no doubt about it. they did. and i understand it had to be collectively bargained with the players association. and at that time jean orza and donnell fehr, and they did not want to have drug testing in major league baseball until it became so rampant. but there's no doubt about it, chris. you look at the effect that peds and steroids had on the impact on professional baseball, it has been wide blown. at one point in time, the majority of the players were doing them. >> i want to go back to bob and get another view. when my brother and i used to argue baseballs as kids, he was a yankees fan. i was a cleveland fan. i'll take any team against the yankees as a kid. but he always said something wise. you know, in sports, in basketball you got to be a tall

guy. these are years later even taller. in football you got to be huge and strong. baseball was always a sport where an average size guy could make it. with all the drugs and performance enhancement drugs and all that stuff, hasn't that changed into a game for moose to play? not you, moose. other moos. meeses. bob, wasn't the glory of baseball was for the average size guy? >> probably the average size guy in baseball is probably about 5'11", 6 feet tall, about 190, 200 pounds. i think that's why people are so offended about the drug is because that's their game. any of us could play baseball. we can't play in the nba or the nfl. unless you're a certain size. when an nfl guy gets popped for steroids or nba guy, it's on the back pages of the newspaper. in baseball, it's blurbed across the front page everywhere. >> thank you, guys. surprising topic. i it is "hardball." we don't usually do baseball but

this is a tough -- i'm a bud selig guy. thanks, gentlemen. up next, playing politics. see if you can identify the actors playing the american presidents here. eisenhower, kennedy, johnson, nixon. it's interesting. these are amazing choices here. especially one playing eisenhower. you will not believe it. this is "hardball." the place for politics. ♪ as your life changes, fidelity is there for your personal economy, helping you readjust along the way, refocus as careers change and kids head off to college, and revisit your investments as retirement gets closer. wherever you are today, fidelity's guidance can help you fine-tune your personal economy. start today with a free one-on-one review of your retirement plan.

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unlimited talk and text on smart phones. now, everyone's in the spirit of sharing. hey, can i borrow your boat this weekend? no. [ male announcer ] share more. save more. at&t mobile share for business. ♪ back to "hardball." time for the sideshow. jay-z was in realtime on realtime with bill maher this friday night, and he wasn't shy about who he's thought should induct him into the hall of fame. the rock 'n' roll hall of fame if and when he's selected. take a look. >> who would you like to induct you? >> obama. >> all right. well -- >> i cheated. >> let's say he's busy. >> it would be all right. he owes me a couple.

>> yeah, he owes you. >> he owes me a couple. >> that would be a presidential first. inducting somebody into the rock 'n' roll hall of fame. the big white house movie "the butler" will be a big film set for release in august has got one important fan, barbara bush. politico reports the movie made the former first lady cry during an advanced screening in kennebunkport. of course it's a story right from where she once lived as first lady. it's about the white house butler eugene allen who served through eight presidencies from 1952 to 1986. it will show a different perspective how those eight presidents treated the people who served them in the white house. i can't wait. and those presidents are played here by some big name actors. dwight eisenhower, ike is played by you believe it, robin williams. jack kennedy is played by the young james marsden. he looks pretty good. lyndon johnson, liev schreiber. hmm. and richard nixon played by my

buddy john cusack. the big question, how did the presidents play play come off? how do they behave when the cameras aren't on and how good are they to the help? we'll find out. next up, it's joe biden auto tuned. the vice president of the united states is the latest politico to go viral with his video, with his new video by singify or songify the news with darren criss of "glee." check it out. ♪ i have two shotguns at my home ♪ ♪ they're locked in a case, there's a metal gun case ♪ ♪ we live in an area that's wooded, somewhat secluded ♪ ♪ i've said jill if there's ever a problem just walk out on the balcony and fire two blasts outside the house ♪ ♪ the shotgun my shotgun ♪ you don't need a machine gun, you don't need 30 rounds ♪ ♪ buy a shotgun buy a double barreled shotgun ♪

>> well there you know. you know he is running for president. i wonder if he serenades his wife jill that way. up next, the republicans the democrats would love to knock out of the senate. mitch mcconnell is getting hit from both sides and the race has only just begun. you won't believe it, he's getting it left and right. you're watching "hardball," the place for politics. discover card. cashback concierge, here. what is a cashback concierge? well there's lots of ways you can get cash back. i'm here to help you get the most out of your cash rewards. it's personalized, and it's free. i want that. we have a concierge! at discover, we treat you like you'd treat you. get the it card with cashback concierge. ever... she let him plan the vacation. "off the beaten path"... he said. "trust me"... he implored. alas, she is beginning to seriously wonder... why she ever doubted...

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i'm milissa rehberger. here is what is happening. nbc news has learned that the house where ariel castro held three women captive for ten years will be demolished on wednesday. earlier today, his two children salvaged personal belongings from that home. san diego mayor bob filner has started his first day of intensive therapy. this in response to allegations of sexual harassment from ten women. and a team of scientists unveiled the world's first test tube burger today, grown from cow stem cells. they say it could eventually

help feed the world. back to "hardball." now i know senator mcconnell believes that i'm not right for this job because unlike him, i haven't been in washington, d.c. for 30 years. but do i really need to apologize for having more government experience than rand paul? senator mcconnell talks about team mitch, well, kentucky, i'm here to invite you to join team switch. thank you, god bless each of you and the commonwealth of kentucky. >> welcome back to "hardball." real political season here. that was kentucky secretary of state alison lundergan grimes. standing tough a few feet from her opponent in that case. you saw her against senator mitch mcconnell, the leader of

the united states senate. the candidates kicked off the political season, we're talking about the political season for next november, the world's largest barbecue in fancy farm, kentucky. this is real. this contest isn't just about the kentucky senate seat. it's a crucial front in the war for control of the united states senate and the future of legislation in this country. it's going to give about a early indication how this race looks. by the way, this is going to be one heck of a horse race. nbc news political reporter caseyy hunt and political and howard fineman were both in fans farm this weekend. casey, you were on the ground there. first of all, we know why it's important. he's the leader of the senate and will face an attack from his right. what's his biggest danger, the guy you saw over the weekend from his right or the woman you saw to his left, if you will? the democrat? >> at this point, his immediate danger is the guy to the right. and that's going to set him up for potentially making alison

grimes more dangerous than she is right now. because mcconnell is really in a a vise, especially going into the fall budget fights. what bevin was talking about when he was going after mcconnell is this letter that senator lee has where he's urging republicans to use the continuing resolution that funds the government to defund the health care program. and mcconnell has yet to take a position on that. he's very carefully walking a line not saying anything. but if the right wing gets really angry about his refusal to sign that letter and take those positions, it's going to make bevin more of a risk. it could push some of the conservative groups in washington like the club for growth to actually go in for bevin with real money and that would be a real problem for mcconnell. >> they are really -- i'm trying to think of the right metaphor. maybe force you to eat something really disgusting or get really low like a limbo bar. to get re-elected as a republican senator these days, you have to go so low. you have to say not only did you oppose obama care. fair enough.

you have to say once it's made into law you have to then defund it. you have to cheat or else then you're not a real conservative. >> well, this is a tumultuous scene down there. it's really unbelievable. it's a big open shed with about 1500 people divided equally, democrats or republicans, cheering or booing. >> this is a catholic event, too. >> it's the st. jerome catholic church in western kentucky. it's a big homecoming summer event. mack bevin, the person that casey was talking about is a businessman from louisville who only got into the race at the last minute as a republican candidate for the primary, which doesn't take place until next may. we're talking almost a year away. i was interested to see as was casey and all the other political reporters whether this guy matt bevin, who is a businessman in louisville and comes from an old new england family is what john mccain would call a whacko bird. unpreacceptable, out of his element, in over his head. and i thought considering the

tumultuous nature of this event where you have to be a pretty tough paul by instinct to even speak, that he did plausibly well. >> well, here he is. here's bevin going for mcconnell from behind, from the right, taunting him. >> be a man, stand up. and put your money where your mouth is. mitch mcconnell is known as mudslinging mitch. because the only thing he has to run on is destroying other people. there is nothing in his 30-year history of voting that he's proud enough of to actually run on. i don't intend to run to the right of mitch mcconnell. i don't intend to run to the left of mitch mcconnell. i intend to run straight over the top of mitch mcconnell. >> well, if i didn't disagree with him on practically everything, i like his style there, casey. i mean, there's a guy not afraid to call the guy a mud slinger which he is. mitch mcconnell is a negative force in american politics. he's not an idealogue, he is a negative. here's the guy calling him on that from the right.

>> bevin also wasn't afraid to engage with reporters. after the event and a lot of them were from the national press. he didn't screw up. that's a big test of this fancy farms sort of extravaganza. they say you can't win your race here at fancy farm but you can lose it if you make a big mistake. and bevin didn't do that. he pulled it through. >> with a local accent, is he a southerner, northern? what is it? >> he's from new england born in new hampshire. >> they don't mind that? >> his family owns a bell manufacturing company in new england. they make the bells for the salvation army among other things. it's a historic company. he moved to louisville. because it's a nice place to live. he became an investment banker and businessman there. >> so he's accepted? >> being from louisville, everybody else in the state views you as a foreigner whether you sound like a kentuckian or not. it doesn't hurt him any more since he's from louisville. but he seems like a pretty smart guy. and as casey says, the question is whether any of the national groups will get interested in him. mitch's problem is he's at

in chess a fork. either move is a bad one. >> let's talk about the lady in the race. a young woman, 34 years old. she's from a very old democratic family. her father is the chair of the party and a state senator. her she is chiding mcconnell, the incumbent for his three decades in washington for being at the center of what she calls the disease of dysfunction. she called him the leader of obstruction. >> let's just tell it like it is. if the doctors told senator mcconnell that he had a kidney stone, he would refuse to pass it. >> well, she's learning the line. she didn't quite bite into that one, but she had the line, the headline. >> her's the thing on alison lundergan grimes. she wasn't necessarily everybody's favorite among the democrat but she comes from a dig political family in lexington. she's one of five sisters. she's very smart. she knows a lot of people in the state and she was kind of born for politics. her father was a state party chairman.

controversial one, by the way, but a very personal guy who knows everybody. they're extremely close to the clintons and james carville. and to that wing of the democratic party. she was kind of born into politics. she doesn't have much of a record which is an advantage because usually mitch is running to tear somebody apart. she's almost a blank slate. >> casey, do you think she has the girl next door or the young girl, she's obviously a young woman. does she look like she speaks of kentucky, she represents the people? >> i actually interviewed her while we were down there. we talked about you know, her race. we talked about her grandmother, where she's from. she was in there chopping up barbecue in the shed next to where they were making their own charcoal from hickory and grilling tons of barbecue quite literally. she was in there getting her hands dirty with that real down home quality. still immaculately dressed but friendly, relatable. she really sort of has that whole package kind of down.

her one big problem here, i mean, howard was talking about her family roots in the state and all that. but you know, what's really going to be dragging her down is of course president obama. i mean, all the democrats even that i talk to had problems with the president. >> great. it looks like she's cutting some of the rip cords or umbilical cords. >> yes. >> thank you so much howard fineman and kasie hunt for the insight. up next from 2014 to 2016, new jersey governor chris christie may have a ticket to ride. will his tough guy personality travel? i think he might be too east coast. but maybe the country wants some of that attitude right now. this is "hardball," the place for politics. [ whispering ] uh! i had a nightmare! the house caught fire and we were out on the streets. [ whispering ] shhh. it's only a dream. and we have home insurance. but if we made a claim, our rate would go up...

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serious eye problems may occur. ask your doctor and visit airoptix.com for safety information and a free one-month trial. is america ready for jersey boy chris christie and his attitude? "hardball" back after this. this day calls you. to fight chronic osteoarthritis pain. to fight chronic low back pain. to take action. to take the next step.

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dizziness or fainting may occur upon standing. take the next step. talk to your doctor. cymbalta can help. you don't send your children to public schools. you send them to private schools. so i was wondering why you think it's fair to be cutting school funding to public schools. >> what is her name? >> what's her name, guy, real quick? because the governor is talking. gale. talk to gale. >> gale, first off, it's none of

your business. i don't ask you where you send your kids to school. don't bother me about where i send mine. >> there is a winning matter. none of your business. by the way, how did he get her name first before he insulted her anyway? that was an exchange between new that was between chris christie and a constituent, i think, during a live call-in show three years ago. anyway, two years ago, left you cheeri inin ining or cringing. the first time the attitude got national attention. here governor christie takes on a reporter who dared ask a question that was off topic. >> did i say on topic? are you stupid? on topic. on topic. next question. thank you all very much and i'm sorry for the idiot over there. >> off topic, you're stupid, you're an idiot. based on a new poll that rates voters feelings of warmth toward various politicians using a thermometer for scale, it does not leave people cold. he's got the highest warmth score on the chart.

christie's style along with his conservative but not fringy views could position him for a run in the republican presidential nomination. a republican strategist and associate editor and columnist for "the help." i want you to give us the sense of the guy. i think he's dynamite in the northeast. he's got the ethnic background, not that that's everything. but he's pro-life. i think he can travel into the primaries. i wonder whether southerners are going to go with this kind of thing. they're a little more nicer in their presentations, at least, politically. and more molasses. >> he reminds me of bill parcells with the media. i think people want authentic, someone who is a leader. they want someone just as mad as they are about government. he does it in a specific sense. he goes after things that need to be fixed. i think he's very effective communicator. >> pandering isn't going to sell? >> he's not a panderer. >> it won't win. >> especially in the republican

primary. >> i think americans are sick of platitudes. and his gift is his outspokenness and passion and bluntness. but there's a difference between when he's mad about an issue or when he's attacking a person or question or reporter a voter. in the public tiff with rand paul a week ago, there was a sense he was getting angrier and angrier. it's unpresidential behavior. >> do you think he seems out of control? >> when you're attacking a person like another senator or voter in the room, it's -- it's unpresidential. >> did anyone see john mccain get nominated another time and he's known for his temper. how did that happen? bill clinton has an amazing temper. >> john mccain isn't president today. i'm not saying he couldn't win the primaries, i think it'll be challenging. but i think what works in jersey doesn't work everywhere. >> have you ever heard of a politician. you've been reporting a long time. have you heard of a politician who doesn't have a temper? who doesn't have one. >> i think barack obama's criticized all the time for not

having a pulse. he doesn't get mad enough. doesn't get happy enough. >> even in the room. >> in reagan versus bush, this is my microphone, i'm going to take it. people loved it. they don't see any passion with obama. he's this cool customer. i think what christie gives you is someone who is going to fight for you. he's going to fight to reform government. and i think that could be very effective. >> you go out to iowa where people are a mix of left and right. it's a hard state to figure. not exactly east coast. are they going to like him? in the caucuses? >> some will. he won't win all of the caucuses. i think all the polls show he's near the top. this is a fight for the battle of -- >> suppose he pulls that number we saw twice there, on some reporter out in iowa. >> that would be a mistake. when it comes to the presidential primaries. >> this is none of your business to somebody about school education. >> if there's one group republicans hate most is reporters. >> constituents. >> yeah. >> let's break a tie here.

if you attacks a citizen, it's a bad thing, but if he attacks a reporter -- >> that's right. >> is he too much? >> i think he will develop a narrative for iowa that he's not using now. i think it's going to be a different narrative than one he uses now. it'll be similar to senator lindsey graham who is under attack for being too much of a squish. he says i'm a fiscal and social conservative. >> someone wants a close general election. let me tell you, every poll we can find shows him close to hillary clinton. all of the other guys are out of the running. >> he shouldn't speak that way to her. >> better not do that. >> who is he going to run against? if he runs against ted cruz and marco rubio, i think he does very well. i like rubio -- >> i think hillary would beat him. but maybe not because he might do something different. do you agree, a.b.? >> i just -- he might beat hillary. i'm just saying, he would have to change his narrative. >> we're not going to change it.

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let me finish tonight with this. you know how great it feels to get a job done. i remember when "time" magazine once said, i like having written. well, you know, the feeling, whatever the job you just got done. how do you think the united states congress, especially the house of representatives feels right now as it begins a five-week vacation. a grand sense of getting a job

done, finally the hard work behind us, the back broken of a particularly tough task. you think? you know that happy exhaustion of a job completed? not on your life. no appropriations passed this year, no budget agreed to. nothing done on gun safety. no real hope on immigration reform. a grand deal on spending and taxes, what are you crazy? nothing done in congress this year. and guess what, you ain't seen nothing yet. as soon as the gang comes back this september, we'll face a three-month countdown to do less. no appropriations on time, not even a budget passed. no continuing resolution, and that could well mean no united states government. that's right, the people who left town after doing nothing are coming back for the single purpose of shutting down the rest of the government. and then after days or weeks or more of screwing around, they're going to stop paying the government's bills. the united states could well be by christmas time the world's greatest dead beat. the country that goes into

default because threatening to do so has become the new happy toy of the hard right. and because the rest of the country's elected leaders have no way of doing business with each other. it wasn't always this way. so why is it this way now? well, that's "hardball" for now. thanks for being with us. "all in" with chris hayes starts right now. good evening from new york. i'm ezra klein sitting in for the great chris hayes. the ongoing war on the affordable carrot is getting hard core. urging citizens to burn their obama care draft cards. of course, there is no such thing as an obama care draft card. you've got to print your own out and pretend and burn that. what if i told you